Phụ đề (118)
0:06- We're 300 meters off the
coast of Santo Espiritu Island,
0:10and we're lighting an
area to attract plankton.
0:13Mobulas feed on plankton. Hopefully,
0:16they'll come close to us
0:17and we'll be able to swim with them.
0:23First, plankton come,
0:29These stingrays have been around
for over 20 million years,
0:34but divers like us are recent.
0:37As future visitors are
summoned to the feeding frenzy,
0:40and the sanctuary is threatened.
0:45What can we do for a
world worth protecting?
0:50National Geographic and Rolex
0:52are sending me across Baja California,
0:55to explore the way wildlife
tourism is evolving
0:58in one of the most biodiverse
regions on the planet.
1:02My first stop is Cabo Pulmo.
1:05I'm here to meet David Castro,
1:07whose family was
instrumental in transforming
1:10a small fishing village
1:11into a global model of sustainability.
1:28- In the '90s, overfishing
1:29had decimated Cabo Pulmo's sea life.
1:32The reef fell sick and the
local economy faltered.
1:41- The Castros and their
neighbors took a chance.
1:44They made a pact to stop fishing
and bet on tourism instead.
1:52Today, David is taking me
on a dive with bull sharks,
1:55to show me how well Cabo
Pulmo's marine population
1:58has recovered since it became
a Nationally Protected Area.
2:06So, we're 500 meters away from the coast,
2:09and there's probably like 10 bull sharks
2:13underneath us right now and
2:15we are the crazy people that are gonna go
2:17under and dive with them.
2:21I won't lie, I'm a little scared,
but I think that's normal.
2:24It's the first time I'm
gonna dive with sharks.
2:38As we dive, we come
across a school of jacks,
2:42swirling like an underwater tornado.
2:47David, suspended in space,
is wrapped and swallowed.
3:00From afar, they are a
humbling force of nature,
3:07up close, a wall of drifting eyes.
3:15This is what a healthy reef looks like.
3:25I almost forget why we're here.
3:36And then, the sharks come.
3:52Sharks have a negative reputation,
3:55but seeing them up close
changes everything.
4:04Fear gives way to reverence,
4:08and reverence transforms
into the desire to protect.
4:45- Tourism is kind of the
blood flow that allows —
5:06- Cabo Pulmo managed to build
a blueprint of sustainability
5:11the community is eager
to share with the world.
5:14My next stop is the
Island of Espiritu Santo,
5:18a neighboring wildlife hot spot,
5:20located in the Sea of Cortez.
5:32- A National Sanctuary
and UNESCO Protected Park,
5:35this cluster of small islands
5:37was almost developed into a casino resort,
5:40until locals petitioned the
government for protection.
5:43Since it was declared a
Nationally Protected Area
5:46in 1995, small tour
boats having been taking
5:49adventurous travelers to
explore what many consider to be
5:54the world's richest outdoor aquarium.
6:31- While most tourists
snorkel with sea lions,
6:37We swim towards the
massive rock formations
6:40jutting from the ocean floor.
6:43Between the towers of red
rock, sea lions play in a cave.
6:48They are fast and agile,
6:52and although they gently bite
our hands and scuba suits,
6:56it's not easy to keep their attention.
7:00A new tour group arrives,
then another, and another.
7:06Suddenly dozens of tourists
invade the surface above us,
7:10blocking the sunlight,
and the sea lions scatter.
7:15Guides call this the red wave.
7:18Red, the color of their life vests.
7:22I wonder if activities like these
7:24are blurring the line
between natural sanctuary
7:33I'm on my way to La Paz Bay to explore
7:35Baja's most established
wildlife adventure.
7:39The way tourism has evolved here
7:40may serve as an example
for newer activities.
7:45I'm meeting Dení Ramirez,
7:47La Paz's foremost whale shark
expert and conservationist.
7:51Her work has been instrumental in ensuring
7:53tourism isn't harming the whale shark.
8:08- Dení takes volunteers
on her research missions.
8:12By including visitors, she hopes to forge
8:14a stronger balance between
tourism and conservation.
8:19Whale sharks are migratory and
collect by the hundreds here
8:23when the waters are warm
and rich with nutrients.
8:26They filter thousands of gallons of water
8:29through their gills to capture the
8:30massive blooms of plankton they
need to sustain their diet.
8:34The camera she places
on its fin will yield
8:37intimate footage from the
whale shark's point of view.
8:45The goal is to see how
the shark's behavior
8:48changes in the presence
of people and boats.
9:30- In traveling through Baja,
9:31I've seen the impact of wildlife tourism.
9:34It can transform a local economy
9:37and help sustain a natural habitat.
9:40To find that balance, we must blur the line
9:43between local, visitor,
and conservationist.
